SUMMER SOLSTICE: Summer begins today at 6:48...

SUMMER SOLSTICE: Summer begins today at 6:48 a.m. That’s when the Earth’s tilt places the sun at the Tropic of Cancer, its northernmost point. . . . Today is also the longest day of the year. Simi Valley gets a jump on the day, with sunrise at 5:43 a.m. In Ventura, sunup is three minutes later. Ventura residents will see the last vestige of the sun slip behind the horizon at 8:11 p.m., weather permitting--three minutes later than sunset in Simi Valley.

LEGAL EAGLE: Ruth Fischbach of Ventura couldn’t be more pleased with her son, Donald. The Ventura native and graduate of Buena High School has been elected president of the State Bar of California. “I’m very proud,” Ruth Fischbach said. “He’s worked very hard and he deserves it. That’s a mother’s viewpoint, of course.” Donald Fischbach practices law in Fresno, where he settled after finishing Hastings Law School. He was elected Saturday to lead the 141,000-member State Bar on a platform pledging no new programs and no increase in dues.

PLANE CRASH: An ultra-light plane crashed seconds after departing the Santa Paula Airport, taking the life of its pilot (B1). Frank Ernest Perry Jr., 72, of Camarillo died in the homemade craft that stalled about 200 feet in the air before plummeting. . . . Slow-moving ultra-light planes can be safer than many other small planes, particularly if equipped with a ballistic parachute, said Robert Goyer, editor of Sport Pilot Magazine. The rocket-powered chute deploys in two seconds and can be effective as low as 100 feet. Perry was not carrying a chute.

NO PERFECT PLANS: Simi Valley’s PerfectData Corp. has survived the departure of Lee Mannheimer. He’s the company’s longtime chief executive who remains under investigation involving an alleged murder-for-hire plot against his estranged wife. But PerfectData continues to be plagued with problems (Valley Business, Page 4). . . . The company lost money on its foray into the computer modem field, its new top executive says.